>> people are watching the hills for signs of movement. mudslides this, hill is awfully wet, not to mention trees could fail, and fall. creeks are raging across marin county. water is pouring off mountains and brings trees down with it. crews are removing this acacia overnight. >> this time, when i saw it, it was just like a massive, like, just, like, mess. >> arborists say they can barely keep up with calls for service saying the ground is

weakening tree roots. this tree fell in lark spur. >> we'rej5oy concerned about stability here so, when ground becomes saturated and that can affect stability. then, we can get mudslides. things of that nature. >> so far no, problems. it's wet but it's stable, they tell homeowners to keep an eye on leaning posts, telephone poles as you just saw, and trees. those are signs that the earth is on the move. we're live in mill valley, abc 7 news. >> thank you so much n east palo alto water district workers are keeping an eye on the creek that flooded, causing evacuation of seven homes and a levy to leak. officials say so far, so good. >> it's looking fine as long as we're not getting anymore anticipation.

so we're just assessing damage at this point in time. >> residents are annoyed and sate flooding happens all the time. city officials are ware of the frustration and hope public work project scheduled for the spring will fix things once skb for all. >> going to the sierra now.r[ç.÷ snowfall is slowing down drivers going to, or coming from lake tahoe area. this is showing a steady stream of traffic. they hope to repeat it for new year's of course. >> here is a look at conditions on interstate 80. winds are gusting up to 60 miles per hour. and you can imagine, chains are required and snow showers will continue throughout the night. chp advising drivers to please take it slow. >> and stay with abc 7 news and you can get alerts from us on twitter. >> we have developing news right now concerning the health of former president george hw bush.

mr. bush is now in intensive care at houston's methodist hospital. a spokesman says he's in guarded condition, alert, talking with medical staff, and he's surrounded by family. he's 88 years old now. he has been in the hospitalñ"@n% for more than a month with a"@n% fighting a strong fever that got worse this week. doctors put him on a liquid diet this morning. >> sky 7 hd over the scene in san francisco. crews rescued a construction worker after a long fall. the victim was unconscious when firefighters arrived. the man fell 20 feet to the cuttout. a stairwell will be placed in a home, it took 10 minutes for anyone to realize what happened. the worker is hospitalized apparently in critical condition. >> police in alameda investigating the christmas night stabbing that injured four people about 10:15 last night on louie starville avenue. police say a family member stabbed four others after an

argument broke out during a holiday gathering. a woman was taken into custody. police say she either used a kitchen or pocketknife. >> we have new information tonight about the young woman accused of slamming her car into a group of>6xe pedestriann twin peaks last week, killing a person. >> the woman wanted to become a police officer. >> friends and family filed into the courtroom. the 23-year-old woman is accused of being drunk, she drove her car into a group of pedestrians last week. they were enjoying breath taking views from the twin peaks outlook. a 56-year-old, visiting from china, was killed. her son and two friends, injured. >> police say eunice fled, but they arrested her nearby. she's being held on $2 million bail. until a formal arraignment

next week. the young woman may already know something about what she faces. >> studying criminal justice. >> should shed she be able to make bail, the judge ordered an alcohol monitoring device placed on her, and that she not be able to drive a car. in san francisco, abc 7 news. >> wall street is feeling the squeeze the day after christmas on heels of a weak holiday shopping report. the dow jones fell 24 points to 13,114 and light trading today, the day after christmas, the third straight losing day for the dow. >> bargain shoppers hit stores in search of after christmas deals. stores are hoping to turn around aym5> trying to lure people in, now. amy hollyfield has more now.

>> stores opened early but clerks far outnumbed shoppers this morning. >> i thought there would be more people here. there aj?> the clerk, i was dealing with said i was her second customer in the last hour. so it's a good time to shop. i got a good parking space. >> hillsdale mall opened at 8:00 instead of 10:00. there are plenty of deals greeting customers big discounts throughout the mall. target also opened early today but shoppers didn't sound impressed. >> i was looking for jackets and sweaters. didn't find that much, you know, of a bargain. >> on days like today, i guess my son needed a razor. they got one here thatu price. >> the big bargains could be found in the christmas section. they were+urzz tough for some to resist. >> came in for one item, ended

up bying $200 worth of stuff. >> the last week of december is important for retailers. research shows stores do 15% of the month's sales this week. that is important this year. nationally, people didn't spend as much this holiday season as hoped but locally we heard a different story. >> i think i spent more than in the past. you know? from my jobs have gotten better. >> i work, we were fortunate this year, had a good year. >> one store owner here tells me he is at 5% compared to last christmas and says he's seeing exchanges and people using their gift cards. >> still ahead on abc 7 news at 4:00 toyota acceleration problems and major settlements involving hundreds of lawsuits. >> extreme weather. a powerful winter storm pounding the mid section and tornadoes ripping through the gulf coast. >> a mother protected her

children from a stray bullet attending church talks to abc 7 news from the hospital. >> and outside we go on this wednesday, day after christmas. looking live at the skyway now. lefthand side of the screen heading towards the bay bridge. folks heading to, from work, others taking a sweater back that didn't fight quite right for christmas. stay with us. abc 7 news at 4:00 continues in just a moment.

toyota reached a settlement in the case involving hundreds of lawsuits over acceleration problems. an attorney says it's worth more than $1 billion, the

largest settlement in u.s. history. toyota recalled 14 million vehicles world wide, because of acceleration problems in several models and brake defect was the prius. a judge must approve this settlem% despite recalls toyota said set to overtake general motors toyota lost the top spot in 2011 when sales were hit by the earthquake and tsunami. >> holidays gave less than stellar sales to retailer autos cory johnson joins with us your bloomberg after the bell report. cory? >> hi, good after the. online brick and mortar companies not feeling too cheery this day after christmas. numbers show that growth is slowing according to mastercard advisor spending pulse. yes that is the name of the

seven-tenths of a percent this year. mastercard has online sales rose 8.4% to $48 billion we havewell off last year's rate of growth. not all predictions says the sales should rise 16% this holiday season. that compares to 15% last year kñ come core, ibm says online sales on christmas day grew 22% up from 60% growth rate last year. shares of research in motion on the rebound today, rising 11%. that move comes after rim lost a quarter of the market value in the two previous sessions after earnings report shares tanking after the black berry maker agreed to lower payments in the future. and samsung getting back at ericson, filing a complaint the u.s. interthagsal trade commission after the u.s. banned import and sale of a

they violate seven patents. both product impacts and devices come about a month after ericson sued samsung for patent infringement. stocks down and bloomberg silicon valley index lower, shares of apple and ebay leading declines. microsoft ringing in the new year announcing it's store locations for 2013, software giants says goitsing to open six new locations nest next year, including stores in miami, st. louis and san francisco. microsoft capping off the year and opens 51 pop up stores including first international outposts in canada. back to you. >> thank you so much. regulators considering whether to make airlines reveal prices to online sellers such as

orbits complaining it's getting harder to know the prices of the air fares so they can compare it. they want to offer customized packages instead. >> talking about the weather, parts of the midest already a blizzard warning now. a deadly storm continues to move across the region. people in illinois, indiana and kentucky bracing for white out conditions cause bid fierce winds. it left a mess in texas, oklahoma and arkansas. the storm is also wreaked havoc at airports. 400 flights have been cancelled nationwide. here is a live look at snowy freeways in cleveland, ohio. you can see clouds working there. you can see lights flashing in the middle of the screen. more snow is affected. >> i want to go, oh, wow.

look at that tornado. >> that is the scary site an alabama woman saw yesterday. national weather service reported 34 tornadoes in texas, louisiana, mississippi and alabama. biggest outbreak on christmas day. dozens of homes were destroyed and two deaths blame frtd storm. the state of emergency has been declared in mississippi knox good time for that to happen, but christmas day must be the worst. >> yes. here at home, a lot better and getting better. >> we're seeing an improvement in weather. we've seen foggy weather here in the bay area. seera, resorts reporting two to almost three feet of snow here is a live look towards san francisco. peaks of blue. some of you may have put umbrellas away. kiiter

compared to what we're dealing w looking at radar, our radar picking up storms first. along with national weather service radar keeping awe head of the storms. you'll notice spotty activity. showers showing up north of clover dale. around the monterey bay, hit or miss showers, these are just popping up. there is instability in the air, looking at a loop you'll notice showers have been skirting the coast. sun goes down, the showers will die down. sierra nevada chain controls on all roads leading to tahoe. we have a winter storm warning going in and temperatures now in the 50s. here are the highlights. showers this morning and patchy fog. mostly sunny skies for thursday. yes. you'll get a nice break, then rain returns late friday going into saturday.

tomorrow morning heading out of the door if you have plans make sure you bundle up. it's going to get chilly. mid 30s in santa rosa and napa. we'll see patchy fog heading into morning hours. we'll have more snours t to -- -- showers to contend w it will be dry for thursday afternoon. i want to show you winter storm warnings in affect until 11:00 p.m. tonight. three inches of snow, i 80, highway 50, chain controls will continue likely unless snow tapers off. sheer look at the next storm heading into friday evening. showers in the north bay, 9:00 p.m. you'll notice snow northeast. saturday, it's not going to be a big storm this, will produce switching to showers saturday afternoon. rainfall totals remaining

under a half an inch. tomorrow afternoon, mostly 50s for highs. kpd clear lake, temperatures in mid-50s. here is the accu-weather forecast. a dry day tomorrow, rain late friday. sunday, sunny skies. monday, new year's eve if you have plans check that out. for the first day of 2013 it's going to be dry with the next storm coming throughhks.z here n wednesday. so they're going to get more dry days than wet days. >> thank you. >> coming up next here, a million dollar mistake. how one store clerk mix up made a family a lot of money. >> later on a message in a nottel brings a man to define gifts this hmd season. >> here is a look at the bridge. you can see in both directions. traffic moving along smartly this day after christmas.

stay with us, abc 7

this is a very cool story. i love this story. a new hampshire family became instant millionaires over the holidays because of a mistake by a cash year. the family celebrated their good fort yooun this week. they won $1.3 million in the

megabucks lottery there. it s it wasn't supposed to happen. then twont a circle k to purchase a lucky for life ticket. the cash year pressed the wrong button. >> sitting on the bus with the ticket in one hand and new hampshire lottery web site and didn't believe it. >> yeah. no kidding. the casheer says she's thrill wtd mistake. the family sthiing of giving her a reward for the lucky carelessness. >> funeral arrangements moving forward now for actor jack clugman who became famous playing oscar in "the odd couple". manhattan apartment where his character supposedly lived has become a tour yaift traction. he died on christmas eve at age 90. he won two emmys for playing a sloppy sports writer living with a neat freak.

>> christmas day movies have people flocking to the movie autos every christmas day, new movies open in theaters this christmas, movie goers were all about it. with two record breakers. that is the second biggest christmas day opening of all time. ñ with $15 n making you third best christmas day opening and the biggest christmas opening for a rated r film. top opening on record goes to sherlock holmes. now to ben afleck who was rumored to run for u.s. senate in massachusetts. the actor cleared it uch this week saying he's not running for office, afleck yerntd a spotlight last wheek spoke

about setting humanitarian aid to eastern congo. singer jessica simpson whats has a big announcement, she's pregnant with her second child revealing the news with a picture of her daughter maxwell next to the words big sis. for more entertainment news go to otrc.com. >> an oakland mother dives on top of her children at church to protect them from a stray bullet. she talks to abc 7 news from her hospital bed. >> politics and coffee. how starbucks is taking a public stand on looming fiscal cliff. >> i'm michael finney. did you receive a new tv over the holidays? coming up, best money-saving options for a home theater system. (;ñ;ñ;ñ;ñ;ñ$x

church supposed dob a save haif yerngs a place to worship in peace. >> an east bay mother is in the hospital after protecting her children fromhc a stray bullet. she's talking with abc 7 news about this ordeal. >> nick smith joins us live with the story. nick? >> cheryl, dan, good evening. maria is expected to survive her injuries. she expected them to learn a

lesson about the christmas holidays. instead, her children sought mother, shot, hit by a stray bullet. maria has a frightening story to tell. >> we're at church with my daughter and people passed by shooting at church. >> she spoke to me from hervhlé hospital bed, shaken by the scene of events plague out on monday night. >> i look back and saw a bullet coming at my son's head. i threw myself over my son. >> the reverend was selling -- telling a 4i whe when... >> boom, boom.'h7qsç we had to stop the sermon. go down. i said go down. as fast as you can. >> four bullets pierced through the walls into the sanctuary of the church and in the path of parishioners. her instinct tworz turn to shield her children putting

her in the path of the spray bullet. >> i got shot in the lung and injured my intestine and stomach. >> the shooting started just before 9:00 p.m. christmas eve. the day most latinos celebrate christmas. the reverend was l with more than 100 parishioners inside, most of them spanish speeblging, many children, all in shock. >> i threw myself down and got a chair and put knit front of me. a bullet came here, hit the chair. >> a lesson that no child should ever have toí"i,jrn. >> you never know. >> the reverend says he has no intentions on leaving the neighborhood. most parishioners live in that area. police did their part but say they have no suspects but the investigation continues. >> thank goodness she's okay. thank you very much. president ob yaum and members

of congress heading back to washington after a break but e. avoid the fiscal cliff. official says they don't know of any significant strides towards a compromise being made for the long christmas weekend. >> president obama spent part of the christmas day greeting thanking service member autos thanks for the work. >> knowing there are steeper cuts and the president is giving it a last shot, cutting short his vacation, returning to washington, d.c. tomorrow to try to hammer out a last minute deal with congressional republicans. if there is no break through, every american will be hit with higher taxes. a schoolteacher with two kids and a salary of $43,000 will face a tax hike of $3,000. the super rich like lebron james would see his tax goes up more thanhóá$2.4 million this

year. >> i want us to not go over the cliff. i think it hurts the country. >> middle class people shouldn't have tax goes up?(héq $2,000 a year, we should start making some meaningful reform on debt. >> going over the fiscal cliff mean morz than higher taxes. federal workers at risk of being furloughed and unemployment benefits for two million people could expire saying the nation will fall back into a recession. there are reports hairy reed is now working on a smaller deal than the one the president negotiate yatesed with house speaker john boehner. >> the package reportedly preventing tax increases on middle class families and cut some spending programs but it's not clear such a plan could pass. >> star bucks is using its coffee cups to jump into washington politics. the world's biggest coffee chain asking employees and cafes to write something other than customer names on cups wanting workers to scribble

words come together on cups this week as a message to lawmakers to settle this fiscal cliff issue. >> jipgs president morsi signed the country's new constitution into law today. >> he called on the opposition to the opposition restricted the new constitution. >> the parts were draft bid islamist leaders. morsi revoked sweeping powers he granted himself last month. saying they were in necessary to get a referendum on the constitution. >> in syria, president assad's commander says he was defecting and joining the open sismgs he was one of the most senior members of the inner circle saying he defected because the army had been turned into a gang to kill and destroy during the 20 month uprising against president assad. >>"áq russia's parliament

approved a measure to ban americans from adopting russian children. the bill is a resfons a new u.s. law calling for sanctions against russians found to have violated human rights. official says 46 children about to be adopted by american citizens will stay in russia if this bill is signed. >> nelson mandela is back home. the 94-year-old had been in the hospital since december 8th diagnosed with a lung inzpex had a procedure to remove gall stones a spokesman says he will receive more care in his home until he fully recovers. >> officials in newtown, connecticut have come up with mj novel idea for what to do with all of the momentos sent po-to-pay tribute to the victims of the shooting. display will stay at the memorial that sprung up outside sandy hook until after the new year. afterwards officials say yimts will be turned into soil that

will be used to make building blocks of a permanent memorial at the site. >> and coming up next, experts have warned about the climbing -- declining childhood obesity rates. research suggests we may be starting the year in a new direction. >> a son's christmas gift turned out to be mer than just this hat. the priceless reaction when he looked inside. >>

trending online today a father's priceless reaction to a christmas gift. >> yes this, is great. his son gave him a hat but real surprise came when he asked his kad to look inside of the hat. >> we're going to game! we're going to the game scla

sclam -- game! >> how cute is that. look at his face. he and his son are go together bcs championship game. >> yes. they're from alabama ask tickets to the title game are hard to come by and pricey. last louance money there. cheapest ticket is nearly $1,000 dollars. >> but that look is priceless. >> yes. >> that is cool. >> we have received great and dramatic post storm pictures we want to share. >> one viewer sent us this picture of a double rainbow in mountain view. >> this photo of a beautiful rainbow over martinez this morning. look at that. when with a caption what a way to start the day in deed. >> we'd like to you share your weather picture or video with us. >> or share them with us through facebook or tweet us.

i like the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. >> not happening. >> we have today's accu-weather forecast. >> there is a dream that there is a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. looking here we've we have isolated showers showing up. i'm going to take you to the east bay. we are getting very night showers now. a few skirting the monterey area but this is all winding down. you'll notice showerssánv have been just parallelling the sints here, we can put umbrellas way. looking at national highs it's going to be cold. there is a high in 17 in fargo. sunshine from st. louis to atlanta. looking cold. 36 in st. louis.

47 atlanta. chicago 34 degrees snow heading towards boston, new york. mid-40s and statewide this is how it's going to look. isolated morning showers and if you have travel plans it's looking good. 30 in what tao. 37 in yosemite. partly cloudy, 31 degrees, high temperatures mostly into low to mid-50s. make sure you bundle up. it's going to be cold. after friday night into v

checking healthy living news, good news in the battle against childhood obesity. new dailta from cdc shows a slight drop in the number of preschooler who's qualify as obese or extremely obese. researchers credit it in more physical activity, plus higher rates of breast feeding that can lead to healthier weight in small children. >> a simple eye scan can help doctors detect the onset, possibly of multiple score yos sis. doctors tried to monitor ms with brain scans but researchers at johns hopkins found measuring thickness of the retina is an easy way to

track the disease. ms tacks the protective layer around nerves. >> under consumer news if you got a new high definition television for christmas we're watching super bowl at your house. no. you may be considering a new surround sound system. >> yes. michael finney will join us. >> i need my sound so loud, i can't hear you guy autos what? >> i that is what i need. watching movies in the living room is great. getting it set up with set you back some big bucks so there are home theaters in a box that can save you money and hassle. so consumer reports has tested dozens of them costing from 250ses today nearly 2000. annie is a real movie buff getting sound that does justice was a must. >> i was able to get a digital high definition receiver.

and speakers to go with it. now i have movie theater quality in my home he bought components separately. another option to get a home theater in a box system. these come with all components that you need, and a subwoofer. >> big advantage is that it comes nogt one box, everything matches and generally the price is less. >> in consumer reports audio lab testers used a reverence speaker system to judge the quality of each set up. good news is quality improved. >> used to be you had to compromise on audio quality. it isn't necessarily true anymore. >> an $800 system is among them, it's delivering terrific

sound and has other nice features like an ipod dock. you can listen to your i tunes library as well. >> if you don't need a blu ray system you can get a system for half as much money. it delivers very good sounds and it's handy. >> so much better. >> thank you very much. >> well, it's a great story here it s a lost and found christmas story. a good samaritan finds a man's lost wedding ring. the hard part is finding the ring's own yes, he's hoping one of you can help him. >> heading to lake tahoe on a dark interstate 80. a driver stops to clamp snow chains on to tires.

in doing so he lost his platinum wedding ring with inscription lisa, 5th june, 2010. >> installing a chain above this. hands got cold. he didn't realize the ring slipped off. >> that is what he told to the snow chain installer who stopped to offer him when he spotted the driver sifting through the snow. >> using light on the cell phone to look for it in the snow. and it had no luck. >> the driver quit searching and with his wife, waiting in their car, off they drove. and so did venedetti. at 1:00 in the morning he returned... >> i decided to look for the ring. i knew where it was. i was hunting with my headlamp and hand light. it took me less than an hour, i found it next to a semi truck slightly submerged in the snow.

>> he found it. lisa's husband's ring. but there was no way to return it. because he never asked the driver for his name, or number. >> it happen sod fast. you know? i've never been married but i know if a husband loses a wed ring someone sells going to be very upset. >> no kidding. that was josh elliott reporting. >> coming up next, forget dating online. an 82-year-old man taking a low tech and direct approach in searching for a wife. >> in concord, a homeless man now has food, warm clothes and new shows. all thanks to another man's message in a bottle. i'll have the story and tell you how you can help, coming up. >> and coming up on abc 7 news at 5:00 keeping a watch over a leaking levy. >> and michael finney is back with a warning about hidden fees on gift cards that may

whittle away the value f you got a gift card, you want to see that. back in a moment.

an east bay man sends a message in a bottle a prom dwrois give a gift to the finder wanting to see how far the bottle would travel, then a homeless man discovered the bottle. taking the sender on a journey he never could have imagined. >> i said here is a coat. >> dan jones is spending dat i continuing to give. a brand new coat, warm lunch to a homeless man we'll call jed. >> i appreciate this. you know? i really go do. it's a got god send. >> came from a little idea he had, he wanted to give someone in their family a gift. free tickets to the oakland zoo. so he put a message in a bottle with a note for whoever found to it text him. >> i just flung it in the creek. >> the bottle travels a few

miles landing in this creek behind sports authority. jay was back here looking for recycling bottles to trade for money. he says he never found a valuable bottle. >> it has a note knit. and it says... >> do you still have it?. >> yes. i carry it. i asked him instead of tickets if i was to get food. >> dan and friends have given more than just food. new shoes, warm clothes christmas party leftovers ask secured a used bicycle for jay, but someone stole it christmas light. >>-night. >> a lot of the story break miz heart. all you can do inteft you can do. >> dan needs help to get jay back on his feet. but jay wants people to know he didn't want a handout, he wants a chance. >> i don't hop couch to couch. i don't do the call people up every time i'm hungry or this or that. i bust my butt and go recycle or i'll look around town see

if anyone needs side jobs done. >> five days away from his 28th birthday, jay's wish is to get the opportunity to do just that. in concord, abc 7 news. >> wow. well, if you can offer employment to jay contact dan jones. he will not accept cash don yaigs just a job, temporary or otherwise. we have information on our web site. >> what a story. >> and forget social media. an 82-year-old man looking for a partner in an old fashioned way. he has been going to a deli putting a sign that says wanted a wife. he's not joking. he wrote that on the side to make it clear. sand yes has been divorced three times but says he's cleaned up his exact knows how to make a relationship work. >> i'd love to find a perfect

companion. >> i'd tlik apply for leftovers? >> leftovers? of lady autos you're looking for a wife? >> yes. >> oh, boy. now there is competition. he says he wants a woman over 60 who loves books and has a sense of humor. so far, no takers. >> he's cleaned up his act. >> he's cleaned up his act, good marriage material. >> and swallowed his pride, you know? >> that is half of it right there. >> true. good luck. >> thanks for joining us for abc 7 news at 4:00. i'm cheryl jennings. >> and i'm dan ashley. if you saved new tab blet computer, remember, you can be connected with abc 7 news all the time tlur ou apps. >> our abc 7 news app available for all of the devices as well as ipad. >> thank you for being here, stay tuned. abc 7 news at 5:00 gib begins

right now. >> emergency repairs on a leaking peninsula levy what. is being done to protect a neighborhood from flooding and faces another problem. >> an avalanche tle. a warning for skiers after two deaths on the slopes. >> i'm sandhya patel. live doppler 7 tracking just isolated showers now. when you'll get a chance to dry out, and what your new year's eve is looking like, coming up. >> good evening. we have live coverage of what the storm has left behind. abc 7 news is live in east palo alto keeping an eye on repairs at the creek. >> first, abc 7 with a quick look at live doppler 7 hd. >> yes.

activity is dying down. i'm going to show you where we're seeing showers. really it's east of san jose. looking at the moisture here, it's in the mountains not much returning there around the monterey bay. we have a few light rain showers around highway 68. you'll see here and as we move this, taking you back three hours, you'll notice showers that were skirting coast and moving in dying down now as the sunset. so we're gooding to get a chance to dry out. here are the rainfall totals for past 24 hours. an inch in san rafael. san francisco, under an inch. oakland close to an inch there. in livermore, 36 of rain. we'll get a chance to dry out but there is another storm coming. it may impact the weekend plans. i'll be back a look at deviles -- details but fast forward to new year's eve and new year' day. >> emergency measures olding

on a failed creek eleveny. now, some residents are eeger to see work beginning on long term plans for protecting their homes. heather? >> from highway 101 here eastward there are about 2700 homes or properties that lie in a flood-plain overlap zone this, is where the creek flood plain overlap was the bay title flood plain. it's what happened sunday night. what overwhemd the eleveny. santa clara valley with ther district came tout tout assess new damage like this giant oak that toppled over. >> that is a big tree it is. i've been watching this tree 23 years. >> the shous just feet from the tree. he thought if it fell it would be in the direction it's leaning all of those years towards the creek not his house. he was right.